HW: Hawkwind's Lemmy, Nik and...

[Jonathan Jarrett]

On Mon, Jan 28, 2002 at 02:45:26AM -0500, K Henderson typed out:
> Zlak spake...

        <snip>

> >Does Lemmy even care anymore that he can't have a Green Card?
>
> As Dan said, seems to me he's lived in LA for a good decade.
>
> However, what you say isn't so out-of-the-realm-of-possibility given that
> Simon House was detained in LA for 24 hours in 2000 on their way down to
> Australia/NZ, based on a drug arrest in 1974-75 (I imagine).  And not sure
> about Brock himself in 1998 at Niagara, whether that was drugs or some crap
> about being a general ne'er-do-well to young kids' minds (as if we were all
> likely to start staging demonstrations against the Vietnam War or
> something).  Tree I assume was drugs...does anybody know if something went
> down with him in '95 or '97?

        I understand that the reason Mr Tree was turned away was that he
turned up with no luggage (and I think someone told me no passport though
I can't see how he'd have got as far as the US side of the Atlantic
without one) bar a carrier bag, dressed in his own particular style, and
they decided he was `undesirable'. Don't know how true this is, though. I
didn't hear that it was drugs, anyway, just being unreal.

> >Nik seems like a charming fellow, and willing to work with just about
> >any musician, and has been making new pacts in recent years with Hawkwind
> >alumni.
>
> Some would argue that that's because he can't do anything successfully on
> his own.  But not me!  :)

        Nik got back in touch with everybody he could in pursuit of the
reunion gig as far as I can tell, which must have been a huge effort. That
that gig happened at all has got to redound massively to Nik's credit. I
do wish he'd attempt some more blanga though, he always seemed to be able
to do that all right. I wouldn't mind seeing XHawkwind hit a studio [1]
but even working with the LA groups again would be good.

> >The burning question I have, is why doesn't Nik and company join
> >forces with Lemmy and record some new material, on the side; an album
> >between Motorhead albums/tours.  Definitely not as Hawkwind
>
> I'll say.  :)  What kind of beast would that be anyway?  I'd hardly see the
> point....though I suppose Nik could play some bigband-type sax when Lemmy
> does his stuff with the dude from Stray Cats et al.  But what does that have
> to do with Hawkwind, past present or future?  Nothing.  I wouldn't buy it.
> And of course, Nik lives in Wales (I think), and Lemmy in LA.

        Quite apart from that I don't think Lemmy thinks that much of
Nik. There was an interview with him while the reunion gig was still in
uncertain territory in which the interviewer asked, as if it were accepted
fact, whether he held a grudge against Nik for chucking him out of
Hawkwind and Lemmy's reply was, "He just rang me up to apologise for that
the other day, you know." I read from this that Nik had to eat a fair
portion of humble pie for that one. But more, Lemmy doesn't seem to do
non-professional stuff these days, he's got a self-image as a Professional
Musician (tm) and I can't see him just launching out and having a laugh on
an XHawkwind venture knowing how chaotic it would probably be. He'd just
think it was a waste of his time, or such is my impression.

        All my opinions, anyway, usual disclaimers apply, yours,
                                                                 Jon

[1] It might be awful. But you'd want to find out :-)
ObCD: Gong - _Camembert Electrique_
--
        Jonathan Jarrett                Birkbeck College, London
                 jjarrett at chiark.greenend.org.uk
        --------------------------------------------------------
  "The large print giveth and the small print taketh away." (Tom Waits)